Never Again
by amekazakai
Summary: Mamori lets the Deimon freshmen in on a secret - Hiruma likes someone and it's not her. That Saturday, Sena and Suzuna bump into a girl who they've never seen before - yet when they mention her to the rest of the team, the second years seem to know exactly who she is.


**Another Hiruma x Reader oneshot for _Shuusui11-11Blade._**

**A couple of notes before this story starts:**

**-SPOILERS-**

**-The scar: I was going to have her stabbed by some gang (it wasn't going to be Agon, he was a last-minute addition) and have that as the factor that drove them apart. After I decided on it, I forgot about it the next and wrote in Hiruma's dad as the bad guy. I didn't want to take out the scar, since it was her defining trait, but the question of how she got it seemed like a plot hole to me. Hence, Agon's inclusion.**

**-Shin going to Deimon's morning practice: I figured helping Sena would rank higher on Shin's list of priorities than perfect attendance, so... BTW, the sentence at the end that says that she sprinted from Deimon to Oujou? She did. I swear she did. My reasoning: Adrenaline rush because of the kiss.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Eyeshield 21**

**Read and review please!**

* * *

It was nearly the day of the game against the Teikoku Alexanders and the entire team was constantly training, but that didn't mean that there was no time for gossip and romance amongst the Deimon Devil Bats.

The freshmen of the Deimon Devil Bats team watched as Mamori knelt by Hiruma's knees and started to press cold compresses on his swollen knees.

Hiruma paid her no mind, continuing to type on his laptop.

Suzuna turned back to the others. "I'm telling you, it's obvious that they like each other!"

Monta sulked. "I still think Mamori-san would never go out with someone like Hiruma-san."

They glared at each other before turning to Sena and saying in unison, "Well, Sena? Who do you think is right?"

Sena looked like he was on verge of going into full panic-attack mode as he backed away slightly. "E-eh?! U-um...W-well, t-they do look like they're c-closer than t-they used t-t-to be..."

Sena yelped as Monta's glare intensified and quickly backtracked. "B-but Mamori-nee-chan p-probably wouldn't g-go out with someone as s-s-scary as H-Hiruma-san..."

Komusubi and the Huh-Huh Brothers sweatdropped as Suzuna's eyes narrowed and Sena began to backtrack again.

Juumonji decided to save Sena. "It's possible they have feelings for each other at least. They definitely seem to respect each other, anyway."

Toganou grunted in agreement as he turned a page of his _Shounen Jump_ and Kuroki just shrugged as he tossed a football from hand to hand.

Komusubi nodded and said, "C-close!"

Suzuna smiled victoriously as Monta sputtered.

Monta opened his mouth to defend Mamori's honor but Juumonji clapped a hand over his mouth as Mamori herself approached them.

"Are any of you in pain? There are extra compresses in the office, so just tell me if you need one, okay?"

The freshmen shook their heads quickly and watched her fuss over Sena for a bit before she left.

As Mamori walked away to check on Yukimitsu, they all sighed in relief.

Juumonji removed his hand from Monta's mouth as they all furtively watched Mamori chat with Yukimitsu.

"We really need to find out what's going on between them."

* * *

The next day, Mamori was over at the bench changing Hiruma's bandages when she felt the now familiar sense of being watched.

She continued her task for a few seconds before whipping around in time to see the group of freshmen on the other side of the field spin around.

She stared in confusion, wondering why they were watching her when Hiruma spoke up.

"Finally noticed, fucking manager?"

Mamori turned back to him. "What do you mean 'finally?'"

Hiruma just raised an eyebrow, his eyes still glued to his laptop screen. "You aren't known for your observational skills, fucking manager."

Mamori colored slightly but chose to ignore the comment. "Do you know _why_ they're staring?"

Hiruma snorted. "Of course I do."

He didn't elaborate.

Mamori didn't ask.

* * *

She didn't have to wonder for long.

A couple of days after her exchange with Hiruma, Mamori was cleaning the club room and the freshmen were enjoying some free time without the second years and Taki when Suzuna approached Mamori.

"So...Mamo-nee..."

Mamori smiled at her as she continued to sweep the floor. "Yes, Suzuna-chan?"

"Do you like You-nii?"

There was a few seconds of silence as Mamori blinked rapidly in surprise, then another a few seconds as her brain tried to make sure it hadn't misheard the question.

"W-what?"

"Do you like You-nii?"

Mamori flushed and her eyes widened in shock as she started to violently deny any feelings of love she might have for Hiruma.

Suzuna took the protest as a sign that her hunch was right and started to giggle with a victorious grin on her face. "Now, now, Mamo-nee, you don't need to deny it!~"

Mamori shook her head vehemently. "No, I'm not denying anything! I'm just stating the truth! And besides..."

She shrugged with a smile. "From what I heard last year, Hiruma-kun already has someone else."

Silence took over the clubroom again as the freshmen struggled to process the new piece of information.

Then...

"EEEEEEEEEEEHHHH?!"

They all stared at her with wide eyes, their eyes clearly expressing their bewilderment and disbelief that Hiruma would actually have _feelings_ (feelings for anybody other than Mamori anyway who wasn't in the football world).

Suzuna's eyes gleamed as she sidled up to Mamori with a sly grin. "So then, Mamo-nee, who is this someone else?"

The smile on Mamori's face fell slightly. "Well, her name is-."

*_SLAM*_

The door to the clubroom slammed open and two palms clapped over Mamori's mouth before she could reveal the person's name.

Musashi stood in the doorway with a flailing Kurita behind him, their eyes wide as they made shushing noises at Mamori.

The freshmen just stared and sweatdropped at the bizarre scene, but Hiruma appeared behind Musashi before they could question the second years.

The men quickly began to change before Hiruma decided to shoot them, leaving Suzuna alone as she began to plot ways to get the truth out from the second years.

* * *

Musashi was walking towards his truck after practice when he heard a female voice calling his name from behind.

Musashi didn't stop, but slowed down ever so slightly, which turned out to be a completely unnecessary gesture when Suzuna flew by him and spun around in her inline skates, braking right in front of him.

The kicker raised an eyebrow in admiration but didn't say anything, waiting for Suzuna to talk.

He didn't have to wait for long.

"Sooooooooo... Musha-syan..."

She leaned towards him with her hands clasped behind her back and adorable puppy eyes aimed at him.

Musashi's poker face didn't change.

"Do you know who this "someone else" is?"

Musashi continued looking at her blankly before brushing past her and opening the door of his truck.

"Hey!"

Suzuna squeezed in between the seat and Musashi, a stubborn look on her face as she crossed her arms and pouted, clearly refusing to move unless he told her something.

Musashi sighed tiredly and ran his hand through his hair. "Look, it's none of your business."

Suzuna gave him an unimpressed look.

Musashi returned the look and they stood staring at each other for a while until Suzuna sighed.

"Okay, so I don't need to know the name. But what kind of person was she?"

Musashi contemplated the stakes.

He had promised not to ever mention her name, but he hadn't promised not to describe, and he _really_ needed to get to his job soon.

He came to a decision.

"She was amazing. Still is. She was never afraid of him and always supported him. And..."

Musashi trailed off, then sighed.

"...Well... They were happy."

Suzuna blinked. "_Were_? What happened?"

Musashi's face eyes hardened. "Shit happened."

Suzuna looked down. "Oh."

* * *

That Saturday, Suzuna was a very happy person.

Hiruma had ordered her and Sena to pick up some equipment although it wasn't an official date, it still felt like it.

After dropping off the equipment at the clubhouse, they had caught a movie and were now going around the shopping district, window shopping after lunch.

A couple of minutes ago, Sena had finally found the courage to hold her hand.

Yes, Suzuna was a very happy person.

Or she should be have been, and she would have been if she could have stopped thinking about Hiruma and his "someone else."

Suzuna couldn't help but wonder exactly what kind of "shit" had happened to get Hiruma to willingly give up the person he loved.

Suzuna was shaken out of her thoughts when she and Sena both bumped into a girl and accidentally spilled their sodas on her.

Both she and Sena gaped with horrified expressions before they began to panic.

"We're so sorry! Omigosh, is there any way can...Where's my handkerchief?! Omigosh, omi-!"

"Pffft...Ahaha!"

They were interrupted by the stranger as she began to laugh at the synchronized panicking.

They fidgeted in place as they waited for her to stop, and when she did, she gave them a wry smile.

"It's fine. We're in the shopping district, so I'm sure I can find new clothes. I've been meaning to buy some anyway."

Suzuna pulled out her wallet, and insisted that she buy her the clothes, which prompted Sena to vehemently insist that he would be the one to pay for the clothes.

The stranger just smiled, amused by their antics.

_'Hey, Youichi? Do you think _we_ were ever like that? That cute and loving? ...Actually, considering the two of us, probably not...'_

* * *

Sena ended up winning the argument, but when he checked his wallet, he found he only had a thousand or so yen on him.

Suzuna had even less, so the stranger bought her own clothes as per her original plan.

But when she saw the dejected looks on the two freshmen's faces, she smiled indulgently and not-so-subtly suggested that ice cream would be a good refreshment for a day as hot as that.

Sena immediately sped off to purchase three bars of ice cream, leaving Suzuna and the stranger to trail slowly after him.

Suzuna studied the other girl; earlier, the cheerleader had been too panicked to observe her properly, but now that she was calmer, she was suddenly struck by the girl's attractiveness.

She was pretty, but not a knockout who would turn heads when walking down the street; her looks weren't why she had such a magnetic presence.

She was self-confident and comfortable with herself, that much was obvious, and that was also a part of her charisma, but there was something else.

As Suzuna watched, she suddenly realized what it was about the other that seemed so off; the girl smiled, but it was never truly happy.

Her eyes carried a hint of melancholy and sorrow, which gave her aura a hint of darkness and mystery that added to her overall aura.

The stranger glanced at Suzuna, who blushed at being caught staring.

The stranger chuckled at Suzuna's embarassment and decided to relieve some of tension. "So how is it? Going out with Eyeshield 21, I mean."

Suzuna blushed and shook her head quickly in denial. "N-no! He's not...! I mean. we're not...!"

The other giggled at the cuteness and ruffled Suzuna's hair. "I see, I see."

Suzuna flushed in response.

The two girls looked up as Sena skidded to a stop in front of them, a plastic bag filled with ice cream in his hand.

The stranger took the one he offered her and smiled in thanks as she checked her watch. "Thanks for the ice cream, but I have to go now."

She winked at them. "Have fun on your date, you two. And Kobayakwa-san, tell your teammates to have fun against Teikoku next week for me."

With that, she disappeared into the crowd.

Sena frowned to himself as he thought about what he'd seen when she had taken the ice cream from him: a small, faded scar on the palm of her hand that looked like something had been stabbed in deep.

He shook his head to clear his mind.

_'It was probably nothing.'_

* * *

"She told you to tell us to have _fun_? Against _Teikoku?_" Monta stared at his friend with disbelieving eyes.

Sena nodded.

Kuroki snorted as he pulled on his jersey. "What would a girl know about the manly dangers of Amefuto?"

Juumonji raised his eyebrow. "Teikoku's quarterback is a girl."

Kuroki blinked. "Oh yeah..."

Kurita bent down to tie his cleats as he asked, "So what did she look like? Do you know her name?"

Sena shrugged. "I didn't ask her, but she was pretty and nice. Oh, and she had this scar on the palm of her hand..."

Sena trailed off and yelped in surprise when Kurita jerked up and lunged at Sena, his eyes wild. "You saw her?! How was she? Did she look good? Healthy? Did she say anything about Hiru-?"

Kurita was cut off by the clubroom door that slammed open.

Hiruma stood in the doorway, eyes flaming and submachine gun at the ready. "You slackers ready yet?"

As the others started throwing on their gear and scrambling for the door, Sena slipped out quickly; he had finished getting ready while telling his story.

He started jogging around the field, but slowed when he heard someone call his name.

Musashi caught up to him and they jogged in relative silence for a couple seconds before the shooting and screams started.

The two of them steadfastly jogged on, not looking back at the chaos behind them.

Musashi glanced at the smaller teen. "So Sena, what exactly did the girl with the scar on her hand say?"

"Ummm... to tell my teammates to have fun against Teikoku next week for her."

"Did she seem healthy?"

"Yes, I think so. She was pretty energetic..."

"Was she happy?"

"Well... She did laugh a lot, but..."

Sena hesitated a little. "I'm not sure, I might have been seeing something that wasn't there, but... her eyes seemed sad."

The two jogged in silence for a while.

Sena looked up at Musashi. "It's not any of my business, Musashi-san, but do you know who she is?"

"Ah."

Sena gave Musashi a questioning glance, but when Musashi didn't elaborate, Sena decided to keep his questions to himself.

Lost in his own thoughts, Sena didn't see the quick glance Musashi threw to their blond captain who was still standing in the doorway, shooting at the rest of the slackers.

If he hadn't been looking for it, Musashi would have missed the slight twitching of Hiruma's left ear.

The blond had heard every word of their conversation.

Musashi faced front again, his face its customary blank expression as he mused.

_"Wonder what new construction projects came in for the guys today?"_

* * *

Musashi never found out what projects had come in.

Hiruma seemed to be missing Kurita and instead of looking of going to look for him, decided to drag Musashi up to the TV in the freshmen's classroom so they could reminisce in comfortable silence.

Or rather, so Hiruma could reminisce and Musashi could stare openly at Hiruma while trying for the umpteenth time to figure out what was going on in the quarterback's mind.

After a while, Musashi broke the silence. "Ever wonder about things?"

Hiruma's gaze slid to him. "About what?"

Musashi shrugged. "About things."

Hiruma leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling. "Lately I've been wondering how it would have been if the fucking freshmen had been able to join last year."

He snorted. "Not that that would make any difference now. Stop making me think about things I don't want to think about, fucking old man."

Musashi started cleaning his ear with his pinky. "...Didn't think you'd want me to bring up the other topic I had in mind."

Hiruma's good-natured grin faded. "..."

Musashi watched him for a while. "Hiruma, what exactly were the conditions your old man set?"

"...What conditions?"

"You said that your old man separated you and her with the agreement that if you fulfilled certain conditions, you could see her again."

"What makes you think I care about anything that fucker says?"

Musashi frowned.

Hiruma was deliberately avoiding the question, which meant...

"...There never were any conditions."

Hiruma didn't respond.

Musashi narrowed his eyes. "Hiruma, what exactly did your old man say those three years ago?"

Hiruma didn't meet his eyes as he answered. "Japan. America. Choose."

"...Why didn't you go with her?"

"...I had business here that hadn't been finished."

Musashi didn't reply and the two of them sat mulling over what had gone unsaid.

_'...Japan or America. Us or her, huh? ...Thank you, Hiruma.'_

* * *

The day before the Teikoku match started with Sena embarking on an early morning jog on his usual route.

He wasn't surprised when he was joined by a silent Shin a few minutes later; jogging with Shin was routine now.

What surprised him was the cheery smile and wave of the girl next to the linebacker.

She looked familiar, and when he spotted the scar on her palm when she waved, he remembered.

"Ah! Hiruma-san's mystery person!"

As soon as it slipped out of his mouth, Sena started mentally facepalming. _'That was smooth, me. Real smooth.'_

She just grinned and laughed. "Is that what your team is calling me?"

"U-u-um... W-well..."

She chuckled. "I suppose it's better than what the Oujou students know me as. To them, I'm Shin's girl."

Sena's eyes widened. "S-senpai and Shin-san...?"

She laughed. "No, it's nothing like that. It's a sexist thing. See, Sakuraba hangs out with Shin and he's known as Shin's best friend. I do the same and I'm suddenly Shin's girl."

Sena laughed nervously while Shin didn't respond.

The three jogged in silence for a while until Deimon High came into view.

She slowed to a walk and smiled ruefully. "This is as far as I'm going today. It wouldn't do me any good to go near Deimon right now, so I'm going to head to Oujou now. Shin, I'm assuming you'll be late?"

Shin nodded silently, then ruffled her hair without warning before continuing on his way.

She chuckled easily as Sena stammered an apology for witnessing an intimate moment.

"It's really nothing, Sena-kun. Tell everybody hi for me, okay?"

She jogged, which left Sena alone.

He stood there for a while before he suddenly sprang into action as he remembered what he had been doing before.

"Shin-san, please wait!"

In his hurry, Sena didn't notice neither the arrival of his captain nor the sudden charged atmosphere as he faced the girl he had left for his friends.

"...Youichi."

"...Hey."

* * *

There was no need for her to ask why he hadn't chosen her.

There was no need for him to apologize or justify his choice.

Hiruma had always understood her in a way he'd never understood Musashi and Kurita.

But, as the slight wariness in their stances and eyes showed, telepathic conversations wouldn't be enough to ease the tension built in four years.

"Thought you'd come find me earlier. I'm sure Sena told you about me, and I made sure he saw the scar I got from the time Agon decided trying to stab me would be a good way to get back at you." "

Hiruma frowned and looked away. "You know my policy regarding the fuckers I need."

She smiled slightly. "Is that what you're calling your friends these days? People you need? That's the sweetest thing I think I've ever heard you say."

Hiruma raised an eyebrow. "You can't think of anything else?"

"The possessive remark about how you'd murder anybody who ever flirted with me wasn't sweet, it was worrying. I honestly thought about asking your dad to get your sanity tested."

Hiruma's face darkened when she mentioned his father.

She noticed and sighed in exasperation. "So your dad transferred mine to the American branch of the company. It wasn't a big deal then, it isn't now. Not to mention, until you get over your temper tantrum, we can't move on with our relationship."

Hiruma scowled. "I know you. You most likely cried yourself to sleep at night for weeks. And he didn't make it easier. Bastard completely blocked you from me."

She pouted slightly. "Did not. Not for _weeks_, anyway. And I thought _you_ were the hacker of the family?"

"He can only concentrate on one thing at a time, but whatever he concentrates on doing, he does it well. Bastard."

She pursed her lips. "By the way, what do you mean by 'completely blocked?'"

"Couldn't find any of your personal data, all e-mail and messages to and from were blocked."

"...So that's why your promised daily texts and e-mails were nonexistent? Which, I admit, were a large part of the reason I cried myself to sleep."

Hiruma's face showed remorse. "And after I promised to never be the source of your tears. Fucking bastard."

She smiled but didn't respond.

There was a moment of silence until she spoke up.

"Soooo... your manager is really pretty, isn't she?"

Hiruma shrugged. "Never noticed. She's not you."

She chuckled. "Keep it up and I might fall for you again."

Hiruma smirked impishly. "Of course you will."

"Don't get cocky, Youichi."

"Kekeke. You will this Saturday."

"I'm sure I will. Are you thinking of giving me the trophy as a prize?"

"Not thinking of. Going to. We've come this far, it'd be fucking a waste of our sweat and blood if we didn't come back with a souvenir."

"Haha. It would, wouldn't it..."

The school bell rung in the distance startled the two and they both gave each other rueful grins.

"I should go. Shogun will kill me for ditching early morning practice."

"Yeah. See you around."

She smiled and quickly kissed his cheek before sprinting off to Oujou.

Hiruma stood for a while, watching her go, then spun his head around 360 degrees, his eyes gleaming as they practically shot lasers at the nearby shubbery.

"Having fun not practicing, damn fuckers?"

Guns materialized and the air was filled with screams of pain and fear as the eavesdropping Devil Bats and their personal trainers from hell ran in the vague direction of their schools.

_'I'll never let you go again.'_


End file.
